Bone-Grinding Cliff

Hall Master Yue announced loudly before the crowd: "Listen carefully. Follow the path through the bamboo grove, which will lead you to the Seven Mysteries Sect's Bone-Grinding Cliff. The first section is the bamboo grove, followed by the rocky wall area, and finally a cliff. Only those who reach the top can enter the Seven Mysteries Sect. If you cannot make it before noon, you may still be accepted as a Disciple on Probation if your performance is noteworthy."

Naturally, Han Li didn't know what "Disciple on Probation" meant; he only knew he had to go forward and climb. He looked ahead—a slope of moderate steepness covered in bamboo stalks of varying thicknesses. It didn't look that hard.

Han Li glanced at the others. He didn't want to lose to his peers. The atmosphere among the children had suddenly grown tense.

Hall Master Yue looked at the rising sun. "It's about time. Get ready to depart. Don't be afraid; the senior brothers will watch over you from behind and make sure you don't get into danger."

Han Li turned to look at the young men behind him. So these were called "senior brothers," probably disciples taken in earlier. If he joined, would he get to wear such impressive clothes too?

While he was lost in thought, Han Li noticed that the other children had already dashed into the bamboo grove. Seeing this, he hurried to follow.

The bamboo grove was quite vast. The thirty-plus children scattered as soon as they entered. A tall, thin senior brother followed closely behind Han Li, his face cold and expressionless, trailing him in silence. Han Li felt a little afraid and didn't dare speak to him. He simply lifted his feet, hunched over, and slowly advanced up the slope.

The bamboo grove didn't look difficult, but after walking for a while, he began to feel the strain. His legs grew heavier and heavier. Gradually, Han Li had to use one hand to grab the bamboo stalks and pull himself forward to save energy.

He persisted like this for a long time until he was completely exhausted. He had no choice but to sit down on a mound of earth, panting heavily.

Stealing a moment, Han Li looked back at the tall, thin senior brother. Despite the steep terrain, the senior brother stood completely still, not even a speck of dust on his clothes, as upright as the bamboo itself. He was silently watching Han Li from a short distance below.

Han Li felt another wave of fear at the senior brother's cold gaze. He quickly turned his head back and heard heavy panting from ahead. He realized that those who had climbed faster than him were also resting. After a brief moment of hesitation, Han Li hurried onward.

The slope grew steeper, and Han Li's strength continued to drain. To avoid losing his footing, he had to bend over and crawl on all fours. Fortunately, his clothes were sturdy enough; otherwise, the fabric at his elbows and knees would have worn through.

Finally, he was about to exit the dense bamboo grove, but Han Li felt the last stretch becoming even harder. The ground grew increasingly rocky, and the bamboo thinned out.

Han Li could no longer use the bamboo stalks to pull himself forward. He had to inch his way through the final meters.

When he finally emerged from the bamboo grove, he saw a vast open space ahead. In front of him was a massive boulder with several small figures slowly climbing upward, each followed by a senior brother in identical attire. Without hesitation, Han Li rushed toward the huge rock face.

The rock face was composed of layered sedimentary rock that had weathered heavily. Some parts crumbled at the slightest touch, while other parts were jagged and extremely sharp. In the time it took to eat a meal, Han Li's hands were covered with wounds, and the clothes at his elbows and knees were torn, with many cuts on the skin beneath. Even though the wounds were small, fine gravel had worked its way into them, intensifying the pain.

The leaders had already climbed far ahead. Han Li thought of his family and his third uncle's instructions. Gritting his teeth inwardly, he continued climbing with difficulty.

Before setting out, his father and third uncle had warned Han Li that the entrance test would be arduous—if he didn't persevere to the end, he wouldn't be able to join the Seven Mysteries Sect. At this moment, Han Li no longer cared about whether he could enter the sect or not. A stubborn streak had taken over; he was determined to catch up with the others.

Han Li lifted his head and looked ahead with effort. The person at the front was Wu Yan. Wu Yan was more than a year older than Han Li and had practiced some martial arts, so he was much stronger than the other children. It was no surprise he was leading.

Han Li glanced behind him and saw several figures still moving. He took a deep breath and increased his pace.

He pushed himself with all his might, but still couldn't close the gap with the leaders. His body grew heavier and heavier. The sun was climbing to its zenith, and Wu Yan had already reached the end of the giant rock face.

Beyond the rock face was a vertical cliff, over a hundred feet high. A dozen hemp ropes hung from the top, each with fist-sized knots tied along its length. Wu Yan was climbing one of them, slowly inching his way upward.

Han Li looked at Wu Yan ahead and felt a surge of discouragement. He knew he couldn't catch up to those at the front, and time was running out.

The moment this thought crossed his mind, a burning pain flared up from his wounded elbows and knees. His limbs went weak. One hand slipped from the rock, and his entire body began to slide downward. Han Li's heart pounded with terror. He quickly pressed his body flat against the cliff face, not daring to move.

After a moment, he calmed down. He reached out and grabbed a protruding corner of rock, pulling a few times to test it. It held firmly, and he let out a sigh of relief.

Han Li instinctively looked back and saw the senior brother behind him crouching, arms spread wide in a protective stance. Only when he saw that Han Li was safe did he slowly straighten up.

A wave of gratitude washed over Han Li. If he had fallen, all his previous effort would have been wasted. After a brief rest, he slowly moved forward toward the thick hemp ropes hanging from the cliff.

He finally reached an unoccupied rope. The sun was almost directly overhead—less than half an hour until noon. Wu Yan had already climbed to the top and was looking down. When Han Li reached the bottom of the rope, he happened to see Wu Yan raise his arm, extend his little finger, and gesture downward a couple of times. Then, with a burst of laughter, he walked away.

Han Li felt a surge of anger. He quickly grabbed the rope and started climbing.

But Han Li had no strength left in his entire body. He could barely even grip the knots.

After great effort, he managed to climb onto the lowest knot and sat down heavily. He felt completely limp, unable to move even a finger. With difficulty, he turned his head and saw a few other children sitting on the rock face behind him, gasping for breath. They seemed to have likewise exhausted every ounce of strength.

Han Li could only smile bitterly to himself. He had underestimated this test. At least he hadn't fallen behind everyone. He turned and saw the cold senior brother again. After a moment's hesitation, he decided to muster his remaining strength and climb a little higher. Even though he definitely couldn't make it to the top before noon, it would be too embarrassing to just stay put.

Han Li stretched his stiff hands and used the bit of strength that had returned to slowly pull himself upward along the knots. But his hands were completely unresponsive; he simply couldn't grip the rope. After struggling for a while, he made no progress.